How to Get a Flood Insurance Policy in Baton Rouge
Baton Rouge homeowners have two options for flood insurance: private insurers or NFIP flood insurance, which is sold by regular insurance agents but backed by the federal government. Your mortgage lender may have certain restrictions on the type of coverage you can buy. For example, if you have an FHA loan, you may be required to purchase NFIP coverage.
National Flood Insurance Program ( NFIP )
The National Flood Insurance Program is administered by FEMA and has existed for more than five decades. It has two types of homeowners policies—one covers the dwelling or building itself, and the other covers contents or personal property. NFIP insurance offers a maximum of $250,000 of coverage on any one building and up to $100,000 for personal belongings. The coverage amounts are the same no matter where you live in the country.
NFIP flood insurance quotes are calculated using a formula developed by FEMA, so any company selling NFIP insurance services will give you the same price—you don’t have to get multiple quotes for NFIP insurance like you do with other types of insurance products.
It’s also important to know that NFIP coverage has a waiting period of 30 days. That means you can’t wait until a hurricane is coming, buy a policy at the last minute, and expect to be covered. Learn more about NFIP insurance at floodsmart. gov.
Private Flood Insurance
Private insurers are another option for Louisiana homeowners. One plus is that they tend to have other coverage options that aren’t included in NFIP insurance, such as higher coverage limits. Their premiums are also usually lower than NFIP insurance, although part of the reason for this is that private insurers won’t write policies in high-risk areas, where the NFIP is the only game in town.
With a private insurance policy, you also may be able to get supplemental coverage for things like temporary living expenses, coverage of basement contents, and swimming pool repairs.